Since 2016, CCDC set up the “City Contemporary Dance Laureate” to recognise individuals who made significant contributions to contemporary dance in Hong Kong in the previous year. Nominees can be of any nationality and from any territory, and from diverse backgrounds including creativity and production, education, publicity and promotion, and sponsorship of cultural exchanges. Candidates are nominated by CCDC members and approved by the Company’s board of directors.

The 3nd City Contemporary Dance Laureate Presentation Ceremony was held at the Dance Studio of Kwai Tsing Theatre on Friday, 13th April at 6:30pm.

Chairman of Sik Sik Yuen (SSY), Ma Chak-wa, Stephen, OStJ, CPM, gave his full support to the Sik Sik Yuen Modern Dance Training Programme, which was implemented in eight SSY secondary and primary schools. The programme provided 140 students with a long-term arts development course that successfully combined dance education and learning of Chinese culture. The joint-school project provided basic dance training and creativity workshops, culminating in a closing performance staged at a formal theatre space when the course completed in 2017. The programme enhanced the comprehensive development of participating students and increased their interest in Chinese culture through movement and dance. Led by Ma and the Education Committee of SSY, this project has found groundbreaking methods to conduct arts education.

Betty Wong began her tailor training in the 1970s. She is personally involved from drawing paper patterns to sewing the costumes. Over the years, she has produced a vast quantity of costumes that allowed dancers to express without constraints, becoming an intrinsic part of the dance world. Known affectionately as “Aunty Betty”, Wong is trusted by choreographers, smaller and medium arts organisations and schools to realise their stage costumes based on the creative team’s ideas and the performance style. In 2017, Wong made costumes for the closing performance of Sik Sik Yuen Modern Dance Training Programme, one of which was a “fire” outfit made from layers of organza achieving a feather like effect. Its tailoring, craftsmanship and stage effect were much praised by dancers and audiences. Putting her heart into every individual piece she made, Wong has become a performer’s most reliable partner, supporting dancers by granting addition focus beyond body and motion.

Nick Ho is well-known in Hong Kong’s education and theatre sectors, for his dedication in nurturing teenagers through stage performance. He believes the strict regime of musical theatre training and subsequent performance help young people establish values and build confidence. The Awakening, which Ho produced and wrote, has been revived three times, and the rehearsal process was captured by Ruby Yang, an Academy Award for Best Documentary winner. The resultant film, My Voice, My Life, is a testament to the metamorphosis of students taking part, showing their growth through music and dance training. In 2017, Ho worked with more than eighty students – originating from Hong Kong as well as South Asia, together with visually impaired young people – to produce Sing Out. The musical received great response and the students found much inspiration from this way of learning.

Hong Kong singer Prudence Liew launched her first album in the early 1980s. The free and daring performance opened up a new style in the city’s pop music industry. On top of her successful music career, Liew’s performance in True Women for Sale won the Golden Horse Award for Best Actress in 2008. The role was a showcase of her talent and willingness to continually challenging herself. When Liew staged her concert Karma Chameleon at the Hong Kong Coliseum in October 2017, she invited choreographer Ivanhoe Lam as dance director. Mixing theatre, cabaret and contemporary dance, the concert was linked together by ten chapters of original dance full of symbols and resonance, broadening the artistic horizons of a pop concert into a cross-disciplinary performance.